JPS60262990A - Wet electrolytic refining method of metallic titanium - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To manufacture metallic titanium with less energy consumption by reducing the fine powder of raw material contg. TiO2 by means of the fine powder of aluminum to TiO, dissolving TiO into strong acid and removing the simultaneously dissolved iron and thereafter electrolytically refining the soln. CONSTITUTION:The crude ore contg. TiO2 is finely crushed in <=150 mesh and mixed with the similarly finely crushed aluminum and TiO2 is reduced to TiO by thermit reaction in a heat resistant vessel. The TiO2-contg. reaction product is thrown in strong acid to dissolve TiO and the mixture is filtered to separate the soln. from the solid residue. Since Tico and Fe are dissolved in the soln., a small quantity of a reducing agent such as thioglycollic acis is added therein and alkaline soln. is added to neutralize the soln. and Fe is separated and precipitated in the form of hydroxide. The aq. soln. incorporated with the hydroxide of Fe is filtered and the filtrate is made lakaline or acidic and electrolyzed by using an electrolytic cell in which insoluble anode is used and pure metallic Ti is deposited on the cathode.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] In the ore reduction method of the present invention, only a slight external heating is required until the chemical reaction is induced, and after the reaction is induced, the reduction reaction can proceed only by the naturally generated heat of the exothermic chemical reaction. It has particular characteristics and contributes to remarkable thermal economy and energy saving.

First, the raw ore is finely ground, and the similarly finely ground aluminum powder is mixed well in the form of a fine powder of 150 or more grains each. This is placed in a heat-resistant container and heated from the external lower end of the container, but the contents of the mixture do not change. If a chemical reaction is induced, this heating is immediately stopped. The induced chemical reaction is a remarkable high-exothermic reaction, and the exothermic reaction induced from the bottom of the container due to natural heating due to the generated heat is caused by the reduction chemical reaction occurring first in a cross-sectional layer at the bottom of the container. However, as time passes, this reduction reaction progresses upward in layers, and finally reaches the top of the mixture, the part in contact with air, where the entire reduction reaction is completed. In this reaction, most of the titanium dioxide contained in the ore is reduced by aluminum and changed to -titanium oxide, but is not reduced to a metal state.

3Ti02 + 27v=k1203 +3Ti0 production - Since titanium oxide is soluble in strong acid, the mixture after the chemical reaction is poured into a strong acid solution in an acid-resistant container, stirred and dissolved, and after the dissolution is completed, it is filtered. This extracted filtrate contains a small amount of impurities such as iron, so in order to remove these impurities, a small amount of a strong reducing agent, such as thioglycolic acid, is first added, and then an alkaline solution is added little by little. Add gradually to neutralize. At this time, due to the presence of a strong reducing agent, the precipitation-forming reaction of iron hydroxide is completed by the time the neutralization of the neutral solution is completed. Therefore, if this liquid is filtered upon completion of neutralization, a titanium compound solution with relatively good purity can be obtained.

To the filtrate thus obtained, either an excess of alkaline solution is added to make a strong alkaline solution, or a strong acid is added to make a strong acidic solution, or either solution is used as an electrolyte and used as an insoluble anode. A wet electrolytic smelting method for titanium metal, in which pure titanium metal is deposited on the cathode through electrical electrolysis.

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Claims (1)

[Claims] Finely grind raw ore, add fine aluminum powder, mix well, place in a heat-resistant container, heat the bottom end, mix the contents into powder, and cause an exothermic chemical reaction. After the reaction is complete,
Pour into a strong acidic solution stored in a strong acid-resistant container, wait until dissolution is complete, and filter. Add a strong reducing agent to this filtrate, then add an alkaline solution to make it neutral, and filter the resulting precipitate. Obtain a neutral filtrate. This filtrate is made into an acidic solution with a strong acid, or an alkaline solution is made with an excess of alkali, the solution is electrolyzed with an insoluble anode, and pure metal titanium is deposited on the cathode. Wet % formula % of metal titanium